I think that the real conversation is not about equipment but the transition of thought from, 'Peace Keeping' to 'Law Enforcement'. The thought process relative to the potential application of force is what we should be discussing.

Drug dealers of any stripe? Death penalty every day of the week. This is the penalty in many countries. No street dealers, no upper level dealers, no king pins. Cut of the delivery and exchange device (street level dealers) and the rest of the vine dies to the root.

My thought on weapons is this: The police should never be in a situation that they are outgunned by the criminals.

I have posted previously that the militarization of the police force is a problem but I had to step back and separate the equipment from the mentality. The actual problem is the transition of thought from, 'Peace Keeping' to 'Law Enforcement'.

Our communities should have the peace kept within them. This means patrols and various ways of, 'Showing the Flag'. The law should be enforced at the border, against bank robbers, rapist, murders, and drug dealers.

This may seem like a conflation but it is the best way that I can think of to elucidate my ideas.